What ever pops into my head...

I know, I know, it's been too long.... lol

2008-12-12T08:58:00.005-05:00

So here I sit watching the morning news and checking my mail and well I decided to go over and check on my blog and notice that I haven't posted in a while so here I go.
I'm seriously planning on including more of my passion for playing with paper and well this is the busiest season for doing just that.
This year I concentrated on making stocking stuffers to hide candy in since finances are tight. I can use paper I have on hand and get big bags of candy from either the dollar tree or wally mart... lol so guess what kiddies... cavity time this year... lol
Of all my projects this year I have to admit the following has to be my favorite. It combines a pretty box from this link, http://tinyurl.com/6jc262 and hershey kiss mice a good internet friend of mine, Elizabeth, came up with. I think the presentation is simply well, wow... I started out just making a few for family but when I showed them to my mom she was so impressed that she took one to a couple of meetings she had that week and a couple of the people ordered some. 25 at first, 20 for a guy and 5 for a lady. The guy loved the first 20 so much he decided to order 20 more. To say I'm a bit tired of making these adorable things is quite the understatement...lol
Let me know what you think...

Any and all comments are welcome...

Happy Post Finally

2008-10-06T12:36:00.002-04:00

Well everyone I just wanted to let you know that I'm doing much better these days. I still miss Christian so much but it is true that life goes on. I still have my days, but that is to be expected I guess.
My creativity is back. I've been busy designing cards and am loving it. I'll put a pic of one I did just this morning but the other two I recently worked on will have to wait to be posted. One is the card I'm using for this years Christmas cards and the other is a card front for a swap I am in.
Yes you read right, a swap. I haven't been involved in one for a very very long time and since it's a small one and not too expensive to ship I joined and am having a ball making them.
I'm going to start posting my creations in my blog as I want to change up the feeling of it. I still may post bits of my feelings, life and such but now will also add touches of my creativity as this is something I'm passionate about.
Thanks for dropping by... I hope you enjoy my work and maybe, just maybe, be a bit inspired to give it a go.
Donna

Saying Goodbye

2008-07-23T23:14:00.003-04:00

Well I just got back from a three week visit in Illinois with my daughter, her boyfriend and his two girls. It was a good visit all around. In my opinion anyway.
This year I was dreading the visit because of one who would not be there. One who would greet me with smiles and giggles. A little boy that would delight in visiting with his gramma.
Christian passed away 6 months ago on the 7th of January. His 8th birthday was on the 5th of July and of course the 4th of July was his favorite holiday because he thought all the fireworks and stuff was just for him. We are all guilty of helping him believe that.
So yes, this year was a hard one. His ashes are kept in a beautiful wooden box with his picture etched on the cover. I found a sense of "closure" while there. Not that I would ever forget this amazing little soul, but a sort of peace settled over me. It was like he came and showed me that it was important for us to move on with our lives and not be sad all of the time. That some day we would be together once again.
I'm not sure if I really believe that but it is comforting to think that it just must be so. That our lives don't just end when our bodies give out. That our souls do in fact live on and we are all reunited again in another place.
This vacation gave me the opportunity to say goodbye once again to my little angel. I still cry for him, though not all of the time. I still miss him calling me on the phone and leaving me cute messages. I still miss the touch of him, the smell of him and the site of him. I will always miss these things and the touch of him but I will try to keep faith that I will see him again when this body of mine is used up.
Until then, I will grieve for the loss of him and revel in all of the memories of this amazing little boy.

Mixed feelings

2008-07-08T10:27:00.002-04:00

Well, here i sit, at the library in jerseyville, il where i am supposed to be checking my mail. floated around to check on my "my space" and then here to see what i might have missed... approved a couple comments and decided to write a little something.
this summer trip is a bit different to say the least. it was the first time arriving to visit with Sandra that Christian wasn't also here. It was the first fourth of July that Christian wasn't at with us in 7 years and it was the first birthday he wasn't here for his party.
we tried to stay strong and celebrate the boy we miss so terribly. it's not always easy but somehow sandra manages to hide the sadness better than i do. she is just such a strong person outwardly even though i know inside she is dying.
she said something to me the other day that i found interesting. she said, "we never get over a loss like this, time does not heal all. the only thing time does is enable us to learn new routines. ones that do not include the ones we lost." it's sad for me to see my daughter so hurt and my not being able to help her. i'm her mother and i'm supposed to be able to make things all better... but not this time... i can't... i can't even make it better for myself. there is and always will be a hole in my heart now but i will go on. i will just have to wait until we are all together again.
now for the good news... we have new family in our lives... jeremy and his two young girls, heather and ashley are now with sandra and so with us. what a great addition to our family. new habits... see sandra, you were right... and i love you...
~MoM~

Feeling Guilty

2008-04-23T22:35:00.002-04:00

Okay so I was getting ready to shut down my computer and stopped to look at the picture on my desktop. It's of me and Christian. As I sit and stare at the picture I'm all of a sudden sad again. Not just from loosing him but also because I feel guilty for not crying as much as I did when he first passed away.
Don't get me wrong, I still cry, just not all of the time anymore. Now it's more like once in a while, like now. Why do I feel guilty? Could it be because I think if I don't cry all of the time I am forgetting about him? I could never forget about Christian. I just feel guilty that I am not as sad as I was. But I am sad, just as sad, but I think I'm accepting that he's gone. Then the next thing is I'm feeling guilty again.
My question is, how can i stop feeling guilty for moving on with my life, a life without my grandson in it anymore? It's a vicious cycle. Sad, cry, stop crying, and then feel guilty for not crying enough, for not thinking about him all day every day. How do I survive this? Who can help me survive this? I can't get help for this if I don't understand it. I've lost loved ones before, why is this one different. I don't like missing him, I don't like feeling guilty when I start to feel alive again and actually accept that he's gone from us on this Earth.
I know I have to accept the fact that I will never hold him in my arms again and that should make me sad all of the time so why don't I cry about it all the time about it? See what i mean?
So there you have my dilemma. I don't want to feel guilty for not crying all the time anymore. I'm really sad about Christian dying, but I still have a husband that loves me unconditionally. I still have grown kids that love me. My parents are still with me and I look at that as a huge blessing. Heck I even have a three year old grandson. I am blessed with all of this so now what?

this will be short

2008-04-07T23:39:00.000-04:00

i think. but then again once i start typing sometimes it just flows.

well today is three months since we lost our little guy and it still hurts like hell. not only for me but for us all.

difference is that most days we are able to go on with things pretty much like "normal". it’s the nights, the quiet, the alone times that i think about him and how much i will miss him in my life. it i’m "distracted" then it seems easier.

it’s not really easier, it’s just that that hole in my heart hurts more when i’m not busy. when he came into our lives we were forever changed and now that he’s gone from us we are once again forever changed.

i understand that life is all about the changes that we go thru but to be honest i really think this one SUCKS. i will never understand the large scheme of things and i will never accept the fact that he’s gone and we will move on.

i for one don’t want to "move on" without him, but i’m forced to so i will do what i am supposed to do for those around me to think i’m fine. just please at least give me my nights to feel what i really feel. to cry if i want to. to scream still if i want to. you can at least give me that, can’t you?

Organizing

2008-03-26T12:43:00.002-04:00

I guess I've been hit by the spring cleaning bug. At least in my craft room. I rearranged it a few months ago and removed the big ole bulky desk that was just sitting in it collecting piles of "stuff". With that out I found I had tons of space to play with.
My problem is getting it set up just the way I want to make it a more productive space. I love having my favorite toys right up and close to me but, I have tons of little things in clear small containers that I would love to have all around me so that their pretty colors inspire me not to mention hopefully get me thinking on how i can use them in my paper crafting.
I would love to hear how you all have your space set up and pictures for me to look at so I might be even more inspired. Just pop a link in your comment if you want and I can come take a peek.
I'm planning on some narrow shelving around my work table to put little clear containers on as well as a huge jar I have that I'm going to fill with clothes pins wrapped in pretty ribbons. I'm hoping it will resemble a huge candy jar. You can be sure that i will now be looking at yard sales and flea markets for "pretty" clear containers for all my treasures.
Now if I could only get past liking them so much that I don't want to use them and give them away. LOL

Old friends / New friends

2008-03-21T00:20:00.002-04:00

Once again I can say that my life has been changed by the internet and in a good way. I got an e-mail from a friend I had lost touch with saying she was so sorry to hear about my loss of Christian. Of course her words touched my heart.
What I didn't expect was that I was invited to join her yahoo group again and reconnect with some friends I really missed. On top of that other friends that left that group were also invited back in. Now not only are we together but we are given the opportunity to make even more friends.
These people are so creative and so open to creativity that it's wonderful sharing ideas and tips and techniques. I'm so glad this friend kept trying. That she didn't give up on me. I love you girl.
You all need to take stock in friends that are brought into your life, no matter how they are brought in it. They are like petals to the flower of your life and even though that flower can live without all the petals they make your flower that much prettier.

Christian Kisses

2008-03-18T19:08:00.003-04:00

Ever notice that when you are feeling your worst, sad I mean. That place you go where you feel like you will loose your mind and never be able to climb out of? Well for the past couple months I’ve found myself in that very place. In a deep dark hole, crying so hard I can’t stop, actually sobbing like a baby, all because I am selfish and miss my grandson, Christian.
Selfish because I’m not the only one that lost him and feel that loss to the very depths of my soul. The number of others that feel this sudden loss is unbelievable. The amount of people who’s lives this little guy were touched by his smile, the look from his eyes, the sound of his laugh or even through just the stories those of us that were privileged enough to actually know him would share. He has changed lives and continues to do so. You ask, okay so what are Christian Kisses? I’ll tell you, I’ll give you just a few examples because I feel they are special, the ones given to me are for me. You all need to open your hearts up to feel your own from him.
One of the very first ones I remember where at his memorial service, while I was reading a special note telling my feelings about him, relaying some of my memories about him. Right in the middle, a really touching part, I started to cry, lost control and was having a difficult time getting back to the task at hand. Not only could I not speak but I couldn’t even see the paper I was referring to so as not to repeat myself. Suddenly, there was this awful sound, the sound of back feed from the microphone. It squealed loudly and broke the moment for just a bit. First thing I did was to look over my shoulder at the my beloved grandson and I said to him, "okay, okay, I’ll get on with it, stop yelling at me." Just like he was there actually yelling at me... well scolding me, he never really yelled at anyone. Then I was able to continue my loving message to all about him without another problem. Everyone in the room, at the exact moment I turned and spoke to Christian, stopped crying also, they all just sat there and seemed to be waiting for a reply from him. They all felt exactly what I had felt. A small tiny kiss on my cheek from the little boy I would surely see again some day.
The only other one I will share, at risk of not getting any more kisses is this one. On the ride home with Ray, it got really cloudy and rainy. We were heading into the mountains in Tennessee I think, or was it Kansas? I’m awful with geography. Doesn’t matter, we were heading into the mountains on our way home from his service and I am really scared of that part of the trip. I’ve only done it twice before but the very first time I spent it laying down in the back seat of dad’s van pretending to be asleep because the road was winding and steep and scary to me. The second time I at least sat up for most of it but was no less scared. So here I was tensing up for yet one more trip through the scary mountains.
All of a sudden the clouds parted, yep parted. The sun shown through them onto the road and right in front of us was driving a Sysco Foods truck. Sysco Foods is the company Ray drives for in Florida. We see their trucks all the time so why would this one be that important?
Right away I reached for my camera to take a shot of it. I managed to snap the picture at the perfect time, right as we were passing a highway sign saying where we were. It was a shot you would think only a professional photographer could have taken, not me. As soon as I took the shot it started getting cloudy again and drizzle started hitting the windshield.
I switched over the camera to look at the shot I had just gotten and of course while in that mode I scanned through the other pictures. One of them was of the very last glass ornament I would make with Christian’s Christmas picture in it. Well the second to last as I hadn’t gotten this past Christmas picture yet. Sandra was late getting them out. Anyway there I was looking into his eyes once again and I felt this peace settle over me. I wasn’t worried about the road, the mountains or anything. I wasn’t afraid. I think because I knew that it was out of our hands and that if it were my time to go then he (Christian) would be right there waiting for me as he will be for all of us that loved him.
So there you have it, two samples of what I like to call Christian Kisses. They happen mostly when I am sad thinking about loosing him. At the worst times of being selfish because "I" lost him and won’t be able to hug him, hear him, smell him. I’m not the only one that lost him and it’s not fair that I feel like I am, but that’s when he kisses me and reminds me that he is still with me. All the other times I like to think he is kissing someone else that needs his kiss. Someone like his momma.
I haven’t told her about these. I don’t know if it is the "right time" to tell her. I only hope that she feels them and recognizes them to help her through this awful time in her life.
Christian was only here for us to borrow just like everyone else. We can’t "keep" anyone. We can only open our hearts up to love with all of our passion and abilities and then deal with the sadness when that one we love so deeply is gone from us for a time, whether on this earth or not. I need to believe all those that we love are with us as angels watching over us and we will see them again when our time to leave this earth is here.

Our little angel got his wings

2008-01-12T12:52:00.000-05:00

on january 7, 2008 my grandson christian got his wings.
his life started as a struggle and ended in peace. he was born on july 5, 2000 weighing in at only 1 pound 8 ounces. the doctors and nurses made sure to explain to his mother, sandra and i that it would be a miracle if he survived the night. when he did they told us it would be day to day.
seven and a half years later that dreaded day came. fortunately for us we didn't dwell on the possibility of the end we concentrated and reveled in the life of this brave little boy.
christian touched more lives than we will ever know. like the commercial that states, "and she'll tell to friends, and so on..." is how it will continue to happen.
getting to personally know this remarkable child was a privilege and i was one of those people that this privilege was bestowed upon. i was the one he called "gramma"... i was one of the ones that got to sit and hold him, to touch him, to breathe him in. i was one of the ones that he looked into my eyes right down to the depths of my soul. i was one of those that he taught how to live, without anger, spite, and self pity. i was one of the ones he taught to live and love whole hardily and i will never be able to thank him enough.
i had always struggled with my faith. i knew or at least hoped that there was something... no need to put a name to it... but something... since christian's passing i've been shown many many things that prove the existence of something else... someplace else... a place where my little grandboy is waiting...
waiting with open arms and when i get up there the first thing i will see is him, arms outstretched, running to me and then jumping up in my arms, wrapping those arms around my neck and kissing me and then saying, "gramma where have you been, i missed you..." which are all the things i could see he wanted to do by looking in his beautiful brown eyes that he couldn't do in the body he was given, but now he can...
i am at peace knowing i will see him again...
I Love You Munchkin' I will miss you but will continue to feel your presence in my life.
Gramma

wee hours of the morning

2007-09-10T02:22:00.000-04:00

and i'm awake... i was in bed... for a few hours now... watching some tevoed shows and getting myself sleepy so that i could get some rest... but what happens... hubby calls me to leave a message not to worry if he's not home on time in the morning cause one of his drivers got his truck stuck in sand... hmmm sand... florida... what an idiot... lol not my hubby but the other driver... tried to bang a u turn in the sand on the side of the road with a huge tractor... yup what an idiot.. and what does this intelligent driver say to my hubby??? "it's okay, i know what i'm doing." lol he sure does... he's staying stuck until they get a tow truck out to him... in the mean time my dh is going to run out of hours according to d.o.t. regulations and that's not a good thing, not to mention that the trailers of food are probably going to be late to their day delivery drivers which is going to make customers ticked... you know... the trickle down effect... lol
so here i am, writing in my blog instead of sleeping because i heard the machine, not the phone ringing, someone talking in my living room... on the machine... so i just had to get up to see what and who it was... and now i'm awake... argh... tomorrow is going to be a very lonnnnng day for me and my hubby... i guarantee it... lol

i may never work outside again... argh...

2007-09-08T07:55:00.000-04:00

The largest orb weaver in our gardens is the black and yellow argiope (Argiope aurantia). Actually, only the female is large, the males being much smaller by comparison. Although big enough to deliver a bite, these spiders are not poisonous or aggressive. The black and yellow argiope is also called banana spider, yellow garden spider, zipper spider, golden orb weaver and writing spider. There are a number of other species in the genus Argiope, but most that occur in the U.S. are restricted to tropical climates. A related species inhabits gardens in Europe. Because they make such big webs and are brightly colored, it is impossible for a resident argiope to remain unnoticed in the garden or, as they sometimes look for sheltered areas, on the side of a house. (unnoticed my butt...)

okay so my gardens are being invaded by these huge yet really beautiful yet really icky spiders... they are everywhere... first two of them decided to build their webs and lay their eggs in one of my gardens out back beside my patio...

being the weird nature lover at first i just watched them and kept an eye on them from the safety of my screened patio... then my dh saw them and soaked them with the closest bug spray he could find. wasp spray... good choice since he could spray from a distance of 25 feet... he also shot down a huge and i mean huge egg sac...

now i have done extensive research on these rather large creatures and even though it says they are not aggressive and not poisonous to humans i still get the creeps just seeing them in areas around my house... and this morning as i was sending my dh off to his weekly golf game there was yet another... or was it one of the ones he thought he sprayed the other day... either way... there she was... hanging from the eaves in front of the garage door... the very same garage door that we use to leave and return to our home... the same garage door that i'm expected to use while going out grocery shopping this morning... ewwww ...

i don't think i will ever garden again... maybe not even leave my house again... maybe i'm not as much of a nature lover as i once thought i was... lmao

internet friends

2007-09-07T23:57:00.000-04:00

who says you can't make friends all over the world and not leave the comfort of your house...? well actually pretty much no one anymore... thanks to the internet...
i just spent a great evening with a bunch of very creative, friendly women sharing crafting ideas and tips and links to sites to spend money that shouldn't be spent but hey it makes us happy to spend it...
thanks to the internet i've got some friends now that i would have never met in my lifetime and hopefully they will be my friends for the rest of my lifetime.
it's great to open up a conference room and just share... encourage, laugh, just sit and either listen or watch the type fly by in the chat...
my life is much more rounded with these new friends in it and i wouldn't have it any other way.
at least there is one more thing in technology that i'm happy for...

marathon calls

2007-09-06T22:10:00.000-04:00

ever have one of those marathon calls with a really close friend? you know... the ones that you are still in the middle of the conversation that started hours ago and the battery on your cordless phone just dies on you and you have to race to the other phone to pick it up before you get disconnected? well i had one of those calls tonight.
she and i usually talk once a week. almost like clockwork and for the most part we always find something to talk about. conversation just comes so easy to the both of us with each other. as of yet never an angry word. always just good conversation. either of current events, our lives, our loves, our health or what ever... even conversations about our pets. for us it just doesn't really matter what we talk about as long as we talk to each other.
we just went about 3 weeks not talking for one reason or another. missed calls because of my paranoia with electrical storms and phones. her daring to take a vacation and not be around to talk to me. me being too sick to just lay on the couch and talk cause the room spins too much... but really her daring to take a vacation... that was a big one... lol just kidding mare...
i do love those phone calls, but i must admit, i would much rather live close enough to her to be able to play together. i mean craft, visit, have coffee, keep each other company. spend time together just being us.
her hubby works out of town during the week and mine works nights. we find ourselves in similar situations. we are with the men we love with all our hearts but without them more than we would like.
we are so much alike yet so different that we compliment each other without even saying a word. we think alike yet can advise or question at the drop of a hat and come up with things that the other just wouldn't have even thought of and then after it's said... say "oh yeah... that's right."
we lovingly call each other sis even though we used to be sis in laws and now aren't... it's not that kind of sis... i feel like if i could pick a sister she would be the one i would pick. she accepts me for who i am and what i am and what i believe in... she doesn't judge me just loves me for who i am... and in return i do all that for her.
you know the type of friend you have that when you are out and a little thing makes you think of someone in your life... you know what i mean... you see something and say oh she would like that or oh that reminds me of when she and i... that type of friend... that's her. she's in every corner of my life without actually being right there.
for me her friendship feels unconditional... no score keeping, no tallies, just there, when ever needed and more so when not needed. there to just be there...
that's who mare is to me..
so have you ever had that type of friend... if so, when was the last time you told them they WERE that type of friend? when was the last time you just chit chatted with them and felt the love? when is the last time you told them you loved them? for me it was today. now it's your turn...

Tag You're It...

2007-08-18T07:54:00.000-04:00

I've Been Tagged....

A very good friend of mine, Sandy, tagged me and now I need to finish these statements and then tag someone.....

I'm happiest when.... I'm home with my hubby and we are having one of those chatty days... love hearing his thoughts and dreams.

Someday I'm going to... become less of a procrastinator and actually finish all of the little craft projects that are in drawers, boxes and bags that are half finished... Oh my, what will I ever do then?

When I'm really down, what I want to do is... learn how to just shake it off and get on with life.

I feel anxious when... Ray calls me to say he's on his way home... I just can't wait to be around him.

I like people who... think of others before themselves, smile when it's hardest to do so and are honest and trustworthy.

All it takes to make me happy is... being around other happy people.

What I really want to do is... stay on this Earth forever to be able to look after all of those that I love.

A person really should...worry about themselves and their loved ones instead of everything else around them that really doesn't concern them. I would think the world would be a much happier place then.

If I could do whatever I wanted, I would... make the world a better place, ie, stop pain and suffering, cure illnesses, whip out hunger, teach our children to be more tolerant, and a bunch more things that I just can't think of right now.

Okay Sandra, Jessica and Mom now you've been tagged... You're it....

i know i know

2007-08-02T00:35:00.000-04:00

long time no blog... lol well i'm here now and let's see if i can put something interesting together for y'all to read...
topic... mortality
i understand the circle of life thing and that dying is part of living and all but it doesn't mean i have to like it... or accept it... and i don't...
i used to be afraid of the pain of death... of how i was going to die and used to pray to God that it would be a peaceful and painless death.
since having kids that has all changed... becoming a mother and then a grandmother has caused me to rethink this whole dying thing.
when my kids were little all i could think about in terms of dying was that i wanted to live long enough to see them do the big things... go to school, graduate, marry and start families of their own... to see what kind of people they grew into and relish in the fact that i made it that long... then i would be at peace to thank God and move on if i had to... and now that's changed too...
next came grandchildren... now that old fear has risen up in me again... now i want to put off the inevitable... once again... for as long as i could so that i can now see my grandchildren do the big things... you know... go to school, graduate, marry... all that stuff all over again...
so there you have it... that circle of life stuff all over and over and over... it never stops... it keeps going on with or without us... just hopefully with us for a very, very long time... at least that's one of the things i pray for..

The Science Museum

2007-07-09T02:30:00.000-04:00

sandra, christian, mom, lisa and her two boys, ben and luke and myself all went to the science museum in st. louis, missouri on the 6th. after work, lisa's hubby brian joined us. can i just tell you??? we had a blast... what fun watching the wonder on young kids faces... the amazement and excitement was electrifying...

it was free to go in but there were certain parts that you had to pay to go in or to see... we paid for two things... one was the discovery room... lots of fun stuff in there to play with... though i didn't think it made sense to have to pay there except for the fact that there was a limit to the amount of people allowed in at one time... but it wasn't like there was a speaker or something...

there were different stations in there that the kids could check out... there was a water station that had these plastic "walls" that you put in to redirect the flow of the water which was pretty cool except for the fact that there were two "older" boys hogging the thing... HOW RUDE... lol

there were stations with computers set up for little ones to do rhyming words and another one that was touch screen to learn about different dinosaurs and the cool part of that one was that you used 3d glasses to see the dinosaurs running at you... pretty cool....

there were plenty of other stations in the room to keep us all busy... i think christian really enjoyed it... i know ben and luke did... and it was easier to keep track of them in the closed room... lol

the other place we paid to go into was the marvel comic room... wow was that a blast... i took a bunch of pictures in there too... i know sandy don't yell at me for not posting more of them here... i'm going to scrap them all into their own book from that day because i took so many... no way to do just a double spread... too much to say... too much to show... lol

all in all it was a great day... for not only the kids but for the adults too... i would go back in a minute... it was that much fun...

My 4th of July Boy

2007-07-05T10:41:00.001-04:00

okay so mom, dad and i are all settled in at sandra's and christian's for 2 weeks... but i think i already told you that... oh well, the hazards of dealing with an old woman... lol

as you all know yesterday was the 4th of july... cookouts and fireworks... love the 4th... you could say it's my favorite day of the year. well at least it has been for the past 7 years anyway... we had some real dark clouds roll in late afternoon and hung around for most of the evening... thought that was going to muck up the fireworks for the first time since christian was born... that would have sucked... but nope, just in time for them to start the sky cleared... what an amazing sunset... i'll pop a picture of it in so you can see it...

when we arrive at the cookout the first time, sandra and i showed up just the two of us... boy did we get some shit over that... everyone was asking where christian was... they don't care that we were there just that he wasn't... he's such a star... lol we had to explain to them that he's at home with o'ma and o'pa for now and we were going to go get them in a while for the fireworks... not very happy people but happier to know that he was going to come anyway... lol

when we did go get them and brought them back not only was he all excited about seeing everyone but he was also excited about getting to see the fireworks... we have him convinced that the show is just for him for his birthday... lol he loves the big bang and the whistling when they head up and the colors...
usually he jumps around and just smiles and squeals but this year he did something new also... when the lower ones were going off, the ones with just color no bang, he just stared at them... didn't move... like he was hypnotized... it was great to watch him...

i don't get to see very many of them myself because i'm sitting there snapping picture after picture because anyone that knows me knows i can't get enough pictures of christian... besides i watch them thru his eyes... he just lights up when they are going off... it's amazing... and yes i know most kids are the same way but with christian it's something more... his eyes are just so full of wonder... i hope he never looses that...

okay so it's 11am and my girl is sleeping on the couch... she got to bed (couch cause mom and dad are in her bed) late last night and up early this morning to get our munchkin off to school... she's on vacation this week which is great because i actually get to visit with her... usually she has to work... i can't even begin to tell you how much i miss her...

I'm here...

2007-07-04T13:48:00.000-04:00

in illinois... got here yesterday morning... around 6am ish... spent about 1/2 hour mauling my little guy... who btw... went spazzy when he saw me... kekeke... he loves his gramma... then off to school he went...next thing i know... sandra and mom are off to the store... mom is amazing... rides 19 hours straight thru from mass to illinois and off she goes to walmart... lmao (we needed food...) i didn't go for the ride... thank you very much... my back was just about gone from the ride out here... i didn't need to add to it. around 2ish i went into "my room" to lay down and give my pain pills a chance to work, oh and to lay down completely stretched out instead of crunched on a van seat... just as i was unwinding enough to doze off in comes my little guy from school... with help from his mommy... to lay down with me to tell me how is day went at school... mommy said that it was so he could take a nap with me... well we laid in bed for almost 2 hours chatting... now christian still doesn't talk... well he does... just not in a language that we all can understand... when mommy came in to check on us after about an hour she scolded us because we weren't napping... we were talking and playing... lol it's all good though...today christian doesn't have school because it's the 4th of july... later on we are going to a huge cookout and to watch the fireworks... of course christian is convinced they are just for him... cause his birthday is the 5th... lol he's going to be 7 years old... lol......

In Taunton

2007-06-28T11:04:00.000-04:00

so here i am... in taunton, mass sitting at the kitchen table with my mom and dad... he's on mom's laptop reading his orlando sentinal news paper and she's writing in her trip journal... and i'm here blogging... i just finished checking all my e-mails and replying to them so we are all caught up... for now anyway...
marc and lucia just got home from a refy meeting and he was trying to get a fire lit under dad so they could go play golf... mom and lucia are going to the store to pick up a few necessities like sugar and coffee and stuff... no not another coffee blog i promise... lol i'm staying here by myself with the dog... take my shower and chill.... all by my onesies in the quiet... mmmm quite...
this vacation is great, i'm loving seeing everyone, but i miss my quiet... i'm not used to the noise of people all the time... after all it's usually either just ray and i or when i'm out mom and i... quiet... sweet quiet...
oh before i forget... today is marc's birthday, he's 31... last night i forced myself to stay up until midnight just so i could be the first to wish him happy birthday... cute huh? then today i gave him his gift and card. hand made by me of course... he loved the little accordion album i made for him of his dog max... i'll take a picture and add it to this when i get it... he also loved the card i made him... i love it when people actually like what i make them... makes me happy...
well dad is wandering around waiting for marc now so they can leave and then mom and lucia will head off to the store and i will relax...

Just chillin' June 24th 2007

2007-06-28T10:58:00.001-04:00

Not much today… just sat around and watched old movies and shows on tv and talked thru most of them… the original plan was that hopefully her brothers and others would stop by for a hello so she bought some burgers and dogs… only one brother showed up… david… the oldest of the kids…
What a funny guy… always has been… also a great conversationalist… I could listen to his stories all the time… even if some were repeated it doesn’t matter… he’s a blast to listen to…
Laurie ended up cooking burgers on the stove because the grill wasn’t working and besides it was just the four of us… very good burgers… she also made a broccoli salad and a pasta salad…
After we ate we came back down to the den and put on more old movies and talked some more… it was just a peaceful day…my kind of day… it was great…
Now dave has headed home, laurie went up to bed as she is a very early riser and I’m sitting downstairs watching “end of days” on sci fi and tying my blogs in word that I will copy and past over to my blog site because I can’t get on line…
Sorry girls I planned on going in and checking my mail and replying but that will have to wait until I get to marc and lucia’s house on Wednesday.

Bubbles... June 23, 2007 again

2007-06-28T10:57:00.000-04:00

Laurie, her mom avis and I went out to dinner tonight… we kind of got carried away talking and then were all starving and none of us wanted to make anything… so we didn’t… we went out for Chinese food… yummo… you can’t get really good Chinese food in florida… my only other food request while up here is a steak and cheese bomb… another huge yummo… lol So we go off to the restaurant and the food is amazing… the company is great of course and we have a lovely dinner…
After dinner we go for a bit of a drive. Laurie’s nephew Dana has been into ghosts and hauntings and stuff and told his aunt about a place he goes to that is haunted and of course now laurie wants to see it. On the way back to her house she wants to see it… with her mom and I in the car… I’m not one for creepy scary stuff but what the heck… it’s still light out… well we found a place we think is the place Dana was talking about but nothing… guess it’s only in the dark. Lol
When we came home avis was tired and wanted to get settled into bed so laurie took care of her then asked me if I would be interested in a dip in her hot tub… a new experience for me again… never been in a hot tub… always wanted to but never have…
Off we go to get our bathing suits on…
Now I’ve been freezing all afternoon… it’s a bit chilly here… but still the hot tub sounded great so in we went… omg… I was in heaven… it was 102 in it and the bubbles and steam were rising… we sat and talked in the dark with just one blue bulb lit in the bottom of the tub and the stars above… oh and one little bug light up on the top part of the deck cause it was really dark getting to the tub and she didn’t want me to fall going down the stairs… next time no bug light… Laying in the tub looking up at the stars and just listening to the night sounds… wow… talk about relaxing…
After about ½ hour Laurie decides to go hop into her in ground pool to cool down and then go back into the hot tub… she goes down and goes right in swims to the other end and gets out… well as she’s heading to the other end I decided that it can’t be that cold cause she just went in and swam so I decided that I would do it too… she asks me if that is what I’m thinking of doing and when I say yes she tells me that it’s pretty cold and I might not like it… I tell her I’ll test it with my foot… my foot… no way my toes… that’s as far as I got into the pool… the water was freezing… brrr… back to my bubbles thanks…
I want a hot tub… I want one really bad now… guess I need to really save my pennies… lol

Pussy cats.... June 23, 2007

2007-06-28T10:55:00.000-04:00

My friend of over 40 years came to sheryl’s to pick me up and take me back to her house for a few days for a visit today. I grabbed my stuff that I was taking and left what I didn’t need for dad to put in the van when we head to Marc and Lucia’s on the 27th.
We gabbed all the way from berlin to Billerica. Sometimes you don’t know just how much you miss someone until you are back with them. She and I are more like sisters then friends… wait no, sisters fight… we used to fight when we were little but not now… we are all grown up now… lol
We get to her house and her mom was here waiting for us, they live together. So we sit and visit for a couple hours. Talking about when we were kids and talking about her new cats. Two are called pixie bobs, a special bread of cats that are close relatives to some wild cat in Africa or something. The third cat “oopsie” is half savanna… another wild cat from Africa. They are all beautiful though the pixies are a bit different to look at… cute though… Paul Mewman… yes that’s his name… is like 17 pounds and short bodied with a naturally bobbed tail. His tail just happens to go off to the left… like a crooked handle… his belly is really wide and when he walks he waddles… the shape is normal for the breed. His best quality is his face. His eyes are amazing sort of a green blue and intense… the fur around his head is so much like a lion it’s amazing. He’s really a beautiful cat.
The other pixie is Princess… she’s half the size of Paul… seriously half the size… she’s older but she was the runt of the litter… I’ve only seen glimpses of her as she’s not really a people cat… she’s laurie’s cat and that is that… after a couple years she finally lets one of laurie’s brothers come near her… she looks like a mini paul but a girl… lol
The third cat is Oopsie… she’s half savannah. She’s gorgeous. Her fur is short but silky and she’s got a lean tall sleek body. She’s the baby of the three but she’s very bossy… her coloring is hard to describe but it has loads and loads of copper in it… some stripes but not really bold ones… more subtle… tonight she actually let me pick her up. Wahoo…. Cool huh???
I miss my kitties… midnight passed away a couple months ago and emma is at home with ray. I will just have to be patient and wait till I get home to see her…

The Visit... June 22, 2007

2007-06-28T10:53:00.000-04:00

This year Jess is going thru some stuff and space at her place is limited so I was unable to stay there for a visit. Unfortunately I don’t have transportation of my own so I have to depend on people to take me places, pick me up, that kind of thing.
Friday, Jess and Gabriel came over to Sheryl and Terry’s to visit for a bit… I was sad that it couldn't be a longer visit, but stuff happens and what can you do… go with the flow… Even though the visit was short it was a great one. I even managed to get some quickie videos of Gabriel for me and also to show his grampa. He’s so adorable. Loads of energy and can be very loud, but interested in everything.
He played with the dogs a bit though was a bit nervous when they came up to him, not him going to them. When he had grapes and Clowie wanted some and followed him all he could do was keep turning his back to her and try to get away from her. Even though she’s a sheltie dog, he’s just 2 ½ and was just the right height to try for a taste.
He was fascinated with the videos I was taking of him with my cannon sure shot camera. As soon as my memory card was full I would load it right onto my laptop and then play it to check it out. He got such a kick out of it though was a bit confused seeing mommy on the computer and sitting right there at the same time. That was pretty funny.
When the first got to Sheryl and Terry’s house Gabriel wouldn’t have anything to do with me. Of course he wouldn’t, he didn’t have a clue who I was. He hadn’t seen me since last summer and well he is only 2 ½ after all. Mom was the first one he connected to then Dad then finally me. He’s very attached to his mommy so when she wasn’t within sight he would get a little upset until he saw her again.
When they arrived they had a chicken nugget meal with fries and a bottle of milk for his lunch. He didn’t want it, just left it on the table. Then O’ma (my mom) got out some grapes and he did some gobbling on those and then a bit later she buttered up some of the special bread she buys for herself at Wal-mart for her lunch but ended up sharing them with him. First there were two pieces and he went for the soft middle and left the crusts… lol Then she went and got the last piece which was a crust thinking that one he wouldn’t want because it was all crust but nope… he really liked this bread and ate most of that piece too… what a good appetite when he likes something huh? lol All too soon the visit was over. It was time to head home and get Gabriel settled in for the night. Gabriel was all set to head home too… we got quick kisses goodbye and then got ready to walk them out. Before we got to the door in comes Sheryl with her little one Noah and a friend of his. As soon as Gabriel saw the boys he didn’t want to leave anymore. He wanted to stay and play. Mom let him play for a little bit while we all said our goodbyes and then Terry showed up so it was a quick hello and goodbye again then she decided it was really time to go now. “Let's go Gabe, it’s time to go home.” “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO” lol he wanted nothing to do with her all of a sudden. He was having way too much fun playing now and was not going quietly. Boy can he get loud… he screamed while she hooked him into the back seat of the car and screamed all the way out the driveway. I haven’t heard from her yet so I don’t know if he quieted down or just kept screaming all the way home.

up the stairs... down the stairs.... argh...

2007-06-28T09:52:00.000-04:00

i hate stairs... one of the rules to having our new house built in florida was NO STAIRS... lol ... when we went to check it out mid build there was one step leading from the garage to the laundry room and ray "kiddingly" had a fit...
i get to my cousin's house and there are the stairs into the house, then the stairs to the bedrooms and of course mom wants me to go and see something "up" in her room so that's a full set up to my aunt's inlaw apartment and then another up to the finished attic where mom and dad sleep... oh my friggin' lord... argh
then i get to my friend's house and granted you just walk into the front door cause her mom is in a wheel chair and there is a tiny ramp... entrance is on ground level... but she has a chair lift to get her up to the main living space... that's where my room was too... but then the tv is "downstairs" so down i go to drink my coffee and at night to chill... couldn't do the net there cause like i said... cable internet and isp issues and i just didn't want to deal even though i understand that it's only a matter of changing the numbers... knowing me i would screw up the whole damn computer...
now i'm at my son and daughter in law's and well let's see... first he had us bring our luggage in thru the side door... down stairs to get in... yup it's a split garrison with a finished basement... then up two short flights to the main living space... nope not me... i did it once... told him i was coming in thru the front... straight shot... up the front stairs then up the one short set... no down then up crap... lmao
when i get to sandra's house in illinois "no stairs"... it's a handicap apartment cause of christian and it's on the ground floor... that way i can get some relief for my legs before i take the long ride home... lmao
i better have lost some friggin' weight on this trip with all these stairs... my hips are just about shot and i didn't know i had knee problems until now... lmfao

whew... been busy... lol

2007-06-22T21:51:00.000-04:00

okay so i've arrived in berlin mass in one piece, which is a good thing... i guess... and am staying at my cousin and her family's house... it's a beautiful house on a beautiful piece of land with a beautiful view out the back... it's not what i am used to in the state of massachusetts... i'm more a city girl, but i love it here... it's quiet and peaceful and very restful...

the ride was pretty much uneventful. dad drove the whole way as usual and mom rode shot gun. her job is to stay awake and keep him company so he doesn't fall asleep and to hand him toll money and such... also she is the one that takes all the fuel reciepts and logs them into her little travel journal...

she has a journal for every single trip they've ever taken whether it's by road or not... she can tell you what all they ate and where and how much it cost... she should be a scrapbooker, but she won't try it... she says she never knows what to say... i made her and dad a page once of a trip they took to cancun or one of those places and left the journelling block empty for her to write in... what the pictures were of that type of thing... simple... nope not done yet... soon... lol so okay back to my trip... i digress... again.... lol

we make the trip all in the course of one day... 23 hours to be exact... we stop for fuel and potty breaks and while getting ready to head off again i make the tuna sandwiches that sustain us till we get to where we are going... dad will not let anyone take over the driving for him.... he's such a guy... he can do it... it doesn't matter that he turned 76 this past december... he can do it and you aren't convincing him other wise...

when we made the pit stop in new jersey and got out of the van i commented "wow, rained more than half the way here", to which dad replies, "that's a good thing because it makes me stay allert and pay attention to my driving..." okay as opposed to what??? not paying attention... note to self... pray for rain when we travel... seems to be safer that way... lmao

anyway, we get to my cousin's house and unload the van and settle in... i love visiting here... oh i already said that... peaceful, restful... blah blah blah... get up this morning and my poor mom is sitting at the kitchen table all huddled down as much as she could in her robe playing mahjong on her laptop and freezing to death... the windows are all open and well... the "breeze" is coming in and it's more like march... just a wee bit chilly and she is complaining that she is "friggin' freezin' " lol... so first i shut the window across from her and then tell her to shut the one next to her... there that's a bit better... but it's still cold... we're from florida and we aren't used to this "brisk" weather... i may be chilly but i'm still loving it... not hot and humid like it usually is in mass in the summer... at least you can breathe the air...

i've been in berlin now since wednesday and today, friday my stepdaughter and my grandson gabriel come for a visit... because of time restraints and space i am unable to go stay with them for a few days so a short visit will have to suffice... it's really not enough time with gabe but what can i do...? he's adorable... he's 2 1/2 and well... likes to have his own way... first thing when he sees me he screams for his mommy to pick him up... then he proceeds to climb up to her head and would go higher if she were taller... about half way thru the visit we are more friendly... this is better... i take pictures and little video's with my camera so that his grampa can see him too... as he doesn't make this trip... i sit and read a story to him, we play on the wrap around porch with the dogs and stuff... i'm exhausted ... ready for my gramma nap... lol... then too soon it's time for them to head home and it's crying time... i hate goodbyes... and i'm an old softie so yes i cry...

tomorrow around noonish my friend of over 40 years is picking me up to kidnap me to her house for a few days... she has a huge in ground pool and a hot tub and "no kids"... lol... it's the sit and visit type of visit... catch up... have a little wine and cheese type visit... my kind of visit... but on sunday she plans on taking me up to hampton beach in new hampshire to view all the sand sculptures... don't worry i'll take a ton of pictures... i love this kind of stuff... then it will be walking on the beach looking for sea shells and stuff...

my daughter, sandra asked me to get her a jar of beach sand for her... she moved to illinois last year and misses her beach... hampton was her favorite... the jar of sand will be for her to open and smell once in a while... to refresh her memory and her soul... i think it's a cool idea so of course i will do it... as well as collect some pretty shells for her too...maybe make a dish with them in it and put some pretty candles with them... to remind her of home...

so there you go... an uneventful trip... thank goodness... a start to a wonderful vacation... and some great visits with some great people... life is good...

the pictures i've attached are ones of my cousin's house... the porch in the first one is where mom and i like to sit and read and listen to the wind chimes, birds, leaves blowing in the breeze and the water fountain in the garden... shaded and hidden from the world... a little piece of heaven on earth.

mom on the porch, we sat behind the tree on the left and this is the view from the back of the house... like i said... wonderful... and it's in massachusetts... unbelievable....

and my boy gabriel... playing behind the dog barrier.... lol

Ready... set... go... lol

2007-06-19T06:35:00.000-04:00

okay so i'm all packed and ready to go on my annual summer trek to see my kids and grandboys... it's a grooling trip... for all of us...
dad is doing the driving... from florida to mass., then from mass. to illinois in about two weeks and then from illinois to florida in another 2 weeks... with only fuel and restroom breaks... at 76 i think this should be his last drive... it really takes a lot out of him... for hours after we arrive at a destination his legs still feel like he's driving... the vibration and all... and he looks really drained... it actually scares me... i don't like seeing him get like that but i also know that for the most part he does this trip for me...
he knows there isn't a lot of spare cash laying around so flying to see all my kids would be out of the question... and since my daughter moved to illinois, well it makes visiting a bit tricky to get in all of them... but she's happy where she is and christian is thriving so that's all that really matters... it's only geography right? he even took me into account when he bought his new vehicle... he said it had to have a big enough bench seat for me to be comfortable on our trip... how sweet huh?? people do change... he's proof...
so there he sits, calendar and maps in hand... planning... where to go when... three of the kids have birthdays all around the same time so we have to be sure to be with each one on their special day... i want it and dad sees to it... yup sweet once again...
mom... what can i say... she goes along to keep us both happy... and of course enjoys seeing her grandkids and great grandboys... but she probably would be just as happy staying home and having them all come down here for visits... she's more of a home body than she lets off to be... lol she rides up front with dad, even though her seat is way less comfortable than in the old van... and tries to stay awake to keep dad awake... she is the keeper of the toll money, rights down the odometer and fuel amounts at each stop as well as the time... she has a journal of each and every trip they ever took up to mass... since my kids were little... actually since they moved to florida... she has what every meal was while on our visits and all kinds of interesting information... she prints out a map of the u.s. and marks off each state that she sees a license plate for... even dad and i help her find them... she doses off once in a while but mostly during the night...
me, i pretty much take extra pain pills cause the trip knocks the crap out of me... besides the usual pain i deal with on a daily basis there is the added from the vibration on the road, the awkward sitting and laying on the back seat and not being able to just get up and move around... it's murder but it's so worth it... besides if i plan it right the pain pills keep me sleepy for most of the trip... just wake up for restroom and food stops...
food stops... lol... this is way too cute... mom makes this amazing tuna salad... very simple but omg it's delicious... always solid white tuna and she buys potato hot dog rolls... when we stop for fuel she and i use the restroom while dad pumps the fuel and then while he's in the restroom we are out in the van making sandwiches... don't want to loose too much time on the road... we are on a schedule you know... lol... dad returns, gets settled back in the driver's seat and mom makes her notes... then it's on the road again with sandwiches in hand... lol
when we arrive at our first destination, dad unpacks the van with help of course, then usually has a quick visit and heads off to bed for a few hours... when he gets up he's rearing to go... it's amazing... mom sits and visits and doesn't usually sleep until that night and then back on schedule for the most part... and me... visit and sleep... and then visit some more... that's what i do... get in as much of my kids and grandboys as i possibly can because it usually has to last me another year...
so there you have it... possibly our last annual trek north... i say possibly because dad has been saying for a few years now that it's the last time we drive up... actually i think it's more mom trying to talk him into not putting himself thru it but we shall see... i just go with the flow... one way or another i will see the ones i love...

pj party

2007-06-08T23:39:00.000-04:00

well tonight was fun... one of the yahoo groups i'm in had a pj party... sadly only about 10 of us showed up but we had a lot of fun anyway... some had recently participated in two swaps... one was a stamped image swap... loads of fun and the other one was a left over swap... new one on me... but also fun...
in the image swap you fill up card stock... i use white... with stamped images of the theme the hostess chooses... i use stazon black ink so that whom ever gets the images from me can color them with what ever they like and not worry about ink bleeding... there were four groups for this swap so i was in all four... i love stamping and getting new images of stamps i don't own... it's a great way to see what all is out there and start your wish list... like i need more on that list... lol
the left over swap was different like i said... you take a sandwich size ziploc bag and fill it with stuff... scrapping, card making, stuff... usable bits from projects that we all as crafters save... usually never use most of it again but it has to be saved just in case right??? lol so you take this stuff and load up the baggie... really pack it in... i put nice papers, some odd embellishments, fibers and tons of stuff... there are three groups for this swap and i got into all three... had a blast and when the stuff was swapped out got back some really neat stuff...
oh yeah, tonight's pj party... well it was set up by the hostess of the two aforementioned swaps... and it was to use some of our new stuff as well as learn how to use some stuff we got in the left over swap that we might not know how to use cause we don't know what all it is... lol
she had prize drawings and i won the second one... can't wait to see what she chooses for me... she always sends me fun stuff... she also set up one class and three challenges that when done we post to the site... yep did em all... she taught us how to make the most adorable paper pj's... way too cute... then gave the first challenge... decorate them with some of the stuff from the left over swap... what a blast...
next challenge was to make a card or layout using some images and embellishments from the swaps... i now have one more card to add to my hand made collection thank you very much...
the third and final challenge was another card... this one you had to use an image from the swap or one of your own if you didn't participate in the swap... and color it in a way different from what you usually do... well i usually do water color so this time i used just plain colored pencils... came out pretty i think... though i did use one of my own images along with a word stamp from the image swap... that matched... cool huh?..
all in all it was a fun evening with friends that i hadn't visited with in a while... i love yahoo groups... i love web cams... mics and speakers... we open up a conference room and turn on the cams and it's crafting play time with friends as far away as australia... canada... and all over the u.s.... people being brought together that would never have met otherwise... people creating beautiful things together and being great company for each other that otherwise might have just spent another evening alone... making life long friendships... that's what it's all about and that's one of the main reasons i love yahoo groups... it has brought some very special people into my life and i thank you for that...

one of those nights...

2007-06-07T23:08:00.000-04:00

okay so today i got an e-mail from a friend telling me that i had to write something because she went to check out my blogs and already read all of the ones that were there... geesh... so here i am...
the topic for tonight is about something that happens to all of us... i don't care who you are, whether you have money or not... whether you are old or young"ish"... or even if you are male or female... this happens to you... it's even been the subject of one of those funny e-mails that gets passed around and around via the Internet and you've seen it at least a half dozen times... i know i have... but it happens to me and it happened to me again tonight...
i was on the phone with a really good friend... chatting away and the subject of cookies came up... i've been on a cookie binge mood lately and well i can prove it by my new waistline... lol so anyway there we were talking about cookies and she asks what kind... well, chocolate chip for my dh and for me... i found this amazing recipe for oatmeal that are to die for... if i remember to i will copy paste into this message if i can remember how for you all to try... i mean this recipe is the best i've ever tasted... no gross cinnamon or anything weird like that... just raisins and oatmeal... well of course sugars, vanilla, eggs and oil... yep oil.... oh and baking soda and salt... which i never omit because it does enhance flavors (the salt does)... (in my opinion)...
so she says she wants this recipe and i promise to e-mail it to her right after getting off the phone... it was a lengthy conversation so when we did say goodnight i had to take a potty break... while walking to the bathroom i glanced to my right and looked into my sewing room... that's when it all started... after finishing my "business" i went straight into the sewing room... i wanted to look at some material i bought to make my grandson christian something for his birthday next month... i wanted to make sure i had enough... and if not i had precious little time to order more... well, i found it, pulled it out as well as bunches of other material... set the one i wanted to find on my cutting table so that i could straighten out the rest of the material cabinet then i would measure the original material i was looking for, but it was wrinkled from washing it so i had to press it first... then i had to find the pattern for the thing i wanted to make... of course made a mess looking for it and after i did find it and put that on my cutting table with the material i was looking for, straightened out the new mess i made...
i turned on my iron and remembered that my dil uses her iron board at the square end not the narrow end... i never would have thought of that... even for "square" material... that was always the "other" end of the ironing board... besides i have one of those cord keepers that is attached to the square end and it would be in the way... or would it... nope... moved it to the skinny end of the board since i was going to be ironing the material for christian's gift, for his birthday in a month, and since it was squarish lol it would be easier to work with... finally i got the darn thing ironed... measured it and it was plenty...
oh well, while i'm here i might as well cut it to get ready to sew... i can type that recipe in a bit... she wouldn't be making them tonight anyway... it's much too late for that... well for normal people anyway... for me... it's never too late to bake cookies... damn... i might end up making some after this now... lol
so i cut the material, then measure and press the 1/2 inch hem all around this thing... might as well sew it now... so i do... then put the Velcro sewable strips in it cause well, i had done this much... lol press it again and guess what? it's all done and ready to give in a month... wow... done early... me... amazing... i'm so proud of myself...
that's the topic... that's what i was talking about... that funny e-mail thingy... planning on doing one thing and getting side tracked doing something else and then the whole darn thing snowballing... but at least this time i did remember to send mare her recipe i promised to send... so this time it worked out okay...

the bestest ever oatmeal cookies... according to me... lol

eggs 2
brown sugar, packed 1 cup
granulated sugar 1/2 cup
cooking oil 1 cup
vanilla 1 tsp.

baking soda 1 tsp.
hot water 1 tbls.

rolled oats 2 cups
all purpose flour 1 1/2 cups
salt 1 tsp.

raisins 1 cup

beat eggs in mixing bowl until frothy. beat in both sugars. add cooking oil and vanilla.

dissolve baking soda in hot water. stir in.

add oats, flour and salt. stir well. fold in 1 cup raisins drop by spoonfuls onto greased baking sheet. bake in 350 oven for about 8 minutes. makes 3 1/2 dozen.

another saturday night and i ain't got no money... lol

2007-05-26T20:12:00.000-04:00

yep i named my blog site perfectly... just as i was getting ready to put in a title for this post the above song popped into my head... lol
so ray is asleep in his recliner next to me... snoring softly for a change and the sci fi channel is on and there is a pathetically dumb movie on... lol it's like a bad copy of armageddon. what's worse is the fate of the world is in the hands of steven baldwin... omg...
you can tell it's a holiday weekend because the posts on the two yahoo groups i am active in are few so not much to read and reply to there so here i sit... trying to figure out what i am going to write about in my blog. since my life isn't all that exciting there isn't a lot to write about but i'm sure i'll find something... lol i always do...
i'm had an annoying headache for days now... so many days that i can't remember... it's one of those that sit just behind your eyeballs and won't go away... it's a good thing i can type and not have to really look at the keys and concentrate much... less strain on my head
like i said, today is saturday, maybe i didn't say that earlier... but it is so mom and i went to wal-mart to do our weekly grocery shop. boy groceries are expensive... $200. just to feed two people... omg... course there were probably some things in the cart that i didn't "have" to buy... and one of them i didn't pay for, mom did... i got my own postage scale/meter... since i do a lot of mailing with my groups that i belong to it will be more accurate than using my little kitchen scale... and this scale goes up to 3 pounds so that's a plus too... don't want to be messing with the government and the post office... lol
oh and i did spend $12.00 extra on something for myself... my combo mic earpiece for my laptop broke and i needed a new one and lucky me, found on in the clearance isle... love that isle... but you have to be careful because some of the stuff there still isn't that great a deal and you can find some of the items there cheaper at other stores... so buyer beware... lol
i can't believe i'm typing this junk... but i just don't have much else to say tonight so i guess something is better than nothing... welcome to my life...
well i'm going to end this pathetic blog and hope that the next one is just a bit more exciting... lol

sleepy

2007-05-22T00:51:00.000-04:00

i'm getting sleepy and seeing as though it's 10 minutes till 1 in the morning i guess that's okay... right?
i once again came into my craft room, put on my laptop and started reading e-mails. i read one from a friend (sandy) about a card swap i'm in and she wrote "yeah, yeah" to my message about me getting them done tomorrow (which was actually yesterday (monday). well i stopped reading my e-mails and slid my laptop out of the way and got my cards finished.
i don't know why i can't just get some of this stuff done... i don't know why i find the need to buy all this paper crafting stuff and get all these great ideas for gifts and stuff and then don't do them... just keep collecting all this stuff and spending more and more money.
it's not like i'm lousy at making the scrapbook pages, cards and such... i'm really pretty good... it's just that i really have to be in the mood and lately... i'm not... i have tried everything from organizing my "stuff " to making lists of what i want to make... no help... i end up getting on this laptop and reading my e-mails and then off to veg in front of the tv or something. i'm falling into some serious laziness and don't like it... but this too shall pass... i hope...
my garden does look nice though... just need to mulch it and it's finally finished... then it's four more to go... yes i said four more... gardens... one long narrow one in the front... piece of cake to clean up and then two good sized ones on either side of the back patio and one off by the side fence... and i'm sure my poor little lemon tree could use some tlc seeing as it hasn't given me a piece of fruit yet and it's been in the ground for 8 years... lol... frost keeps getting it and then i just plain forget to feed it and down here in florida you have to feed just about everything since we are all sand and the nutrients just wash away... hmmm maybe tomorrow evening i'll go take a look at her and clean her up then feed her... who knows maybe this will be the year for some of those amazing myer lemons...
well that's all i got... lack of enthusiasm for crafting, lack of enthusiasm for gardening and well just the lack of... for anything... there is always tomorrow...

argh....

2007-05-15T23:21:00.000-04:00

i came into my craft room to log on the puter just to check my mail and maybe write a small blog...

3 hours later i'm still sitting here... haven't finished going through my e-mails... yes i'm that popular... j/k it's not all personally for me... but i like to think it is... lol

i was fine till i got to a message from becky... with a link to a you tube video on tying a piece of ribbon... i mean really... how hard is it to tie a knot...??? lol

in the message was a note from becky on how to tie the perfect bow in ribbon... well i can and i do... i made myself a bow maker out of a piece of 2x4 and some dowels... works like a charm... so of course i had to stop reading my mail, find the darn thing... (bow maker) and take pictures of it so i could post them to the yahoo group becky is in for her to see...

well just showing her and the others this neat tool wasn't enough... i then had to go and get a piece or ribbon and actually make a bow and take a picture of it to prove it was in fact a perfect one... lol which it is...

so of course i had to take the pictures and upload them to my photo album in said group and then post a message that they were there and put the link for them to get to the photo album easier so that they could see just how smart i am... making this all by my onsies... lol

so yes here it is 3 hours later and i haven't gotten in the shower from working out in the front garden tonight... can you say filthy... ewwww... my back hurts and i'm tired... but i always have time for my girls...

love you all....

my bow maker... lol

gardening

2007-05-14T20:23:00.000-04:00

i love to garden... i love digging in the dirt and getting my hands dirty... no i'm not a use gloves kind of woman... can't feel what i'm doing with gloves on... makes for messy manicures and more cuts and stuff on my hands but still my gardening method of choice... i have the hands of a worker and can't do anything about that not that i would want to anyway...
so i weeded that garden that i have been working on for months... i have to work in moderation, which is not easy to get used to but necessary for my pain management... though i have found a few things that help me not hurt myself as much and am adding to my methods daily... yeah me...
on thing i use is a scooter... it's this low padded seat on wheels for gardening... keeps me off my knees and actually does take some of the stress off my lower back and hips which is where most of my problems are anyway...
i also have problems with the sun... medications make it unsafe for me to be in direct sun for long periods of time so i created portable shade... my neighbors laugh at me and ask if i'm a peanut vendor... but hey... at least i don't burn... and i can work outside longer cause the blazing florida heat isn't baking me...
what i did was take one of those rubbermaid gardening carts... that i found at a yardsale for $20.00... great price btw... and put my base from my deck umbrella on the front platform of it for a counter balance and then took the pole that goes into it and mounted it to the front of the cart with duct tape... lol... 1002 uses... lol now when i go outside to work i just open up my really big deck umbrella and pop it into the pole attached to the cart and i have my portable shade on wheels as well as all the spots to carry my various gardening tools and stuff...
i may look silly out there under my umbrella but my gardens and myself definitely benefit... lol
so my front garden... most of the stuff is in small to medium pots... all my landscape cloth is down and now i'm waiting for rocks from my dad... (we don't have rocks in florida and if you want them you either have to buy them... not or you have to cart them down from other states... which is what dad did over the course of over 5 years and now he has too many and is going to share with his only daughter... lol).
also i have to buy a few bags of mulch... i'm not sure what kind i want... leaning towards the recycled tires... they last longer and don't float away with the rains... if we ever get any... lol
once that's down my pots will have some insulation from the hot sun, since my garden is south facing and my little oak tree i planted 2 years ago doesn't quite throw enough shade as of yet... lol
once i get this garden done, hopefully before i head north in a month, my next project when i return is to extend a narrow garden under my craft room window so that i can move my bird feeder poles out front and make that all pretty and nice...
so that's it for this blog... i'll catch you again tomorrow... hopefully...

guess i need to develope a new habit...

2007-05-14T00:18:00.000-04:00

cause i forgot to post again... lol
so it's just after midnight and yesterday was mother's day... first... my daughter sandra called and wished me a happy mother's day and then told me that she was at the hospital with her best friend since 2 am... her friend brandy and husband craig just brought their second little girl into the world... what a great mother's day gift...
the next child to call me was my step (i hate that word) daughter jessica... she wanted to know how high a fever a child can have before it's time to worry... ummmm okay so now i'm worried and don't even know how high a temp we are talking about... it was 102 under the arm pit and when he tries to sleep he makes these wimpery noises and twitched... ray says now is the time to worry and to take him to the er... it's gabriel we are talking about and he's just a little older than 2... and oh btw... happy mother's day... lol she called later to let us know he's fine... i can stop worrying for now...
later tonight i got a call from marc... first thing he says when i say hello is... "oh good you got home safely..." lol i guess i forgot to call when i got home to say i was okay and the flight was okay... much better than the one to get up there... but then again it wouldn't have been hard to be better than that one right??? lol then i get my happy mother's day from him...
only one left would be my step (again with that word) son michael... nope... not this year again... oh well, he's busy i guess... at least that's what i tell myself... that way it hurts less...
so my mother's day consisted of me making yummy special scrambled eggs and toast for myself and hubby... then watching a bunch of tevoed shows that he saved from when i was up in mass taking care of marc... wow i had a lot to catch up on... so basically the afternoon was spent vegging in front to the tube with my honey...
made my american goulash for dinner... another yummo... and off to work he went... then it was out in the yard to water my dried up dying plants in my newly weeded garden that doesn't look newly weeded cause it got messy while i was up in mass taking care of marc... lol
i potted a few plants i stole from marc and lucia's yard and now it's hoping they make the transition cause though i have a few bleeding heart plants down here already they are the white ones and well i just love the red ones and that's what they had... so i stole some...
i also stole some hosta... i just recently found out you can grow that down here as long as it doesn't get full sun all day long... i'll keep that in mind when they got into the ground but for now they are in pots to get used to the heat down here...
then there were these other plants... kind of like a johnny jump up, viola, mini pansy type plants... white flowers with purple lines in them and really beautiful green foliage... they spread sort of like strawberry plants and grow in neat circular bunches... i like that... neat plants... so now we shall see if they make it too since their leaves all fell off during their trip down here... guess they didn't like the damp paper towel in the ziploc bag stuffed into the suitcase thing... lol
i even took the time to "weed" the few pots in the front... maybe i'll get to some more weeding tomorrow but then again maybe not...
i'm supposed to go to the last "ladies club" meeting of the year... this is the one we give away the two college scholarships... i suppose i should go but we shall see... lots of the ladies have been wondering why i haven't gone in a while and i don't think i can handle all the questions... it's been an emotional year this year and well i'm just now getting back to feeling like me again... so maybe i will skip this one too... though i do have a few lady friends that i miss and would love to see... hmmm maybe i can plan a little brunch some saturday and have them over... that would be nice...
so other than that i'm all settled back in at home and loving being here even if it's only for a few weeks... then it's on the road for at least a month on my annual trek up north to see my kids and grandboys... again i will miss home but when it comes to seeing my kids and grandboys it's all worth while... besides then it will be another long wait to see them again...
so to all of you ladies that are mommies... Happy Mother's Day 30ish minutes late...
love,
donna

oops i missed one

2007-05-11T10:53:00.000-04:00

so i never did do a post yesterday and no the novelty isn't already worn off... i got home, took a much needed nap and then saw ray off to work... next thing i did was mooch a dinner off mom and dad... lol
really, i did call mom, asked what was for dinner, i wasn't picky, no food in the house when i got home and i was hungry. ray bought mc'ds and i was sol (shit out of luck)... lol mom came and picked me up and off to dinner i went.
dinner was leftovers but very yummy ones. i got spaghetti and chicken... dad had spaghetti and veal (yuck) and mom fettuccine alfredo... oh and we had small salads first and bread sticks with... yummo...
during dinner we had helicopters flying really low over the house and being of a curious nature, mom and i got up to go take a look... life flight, omg near by, something bad happened some place... he's circling looking for a place to land amongst the trees and power lines... and i'll tell you he was a heck of a pilot cause he did it.
next came the channel 9 copter circling and filming. they probably got a shot of mom and dad's roof and pool... they circled for a bit and then were gone.
next we heard the life flight take off again and sirens... lots of sirens... yep something really, really bad...
mom and i couldn't stand it anymore so off we went... walking towards where we knew the problem was. dad was worrying cause all he could think of was a shooting or something. nope not this time and yes we have shootings occasionally just like almost every other community on the planet...
we get to the end of mom's street and there is a huge crowd... i didn't know we had that many people living in the area... j/k i knew we were crowded it's really a great area and the houses are really inexpensive so just about anyone can afford to live here... oops back to the story...
it was a car crash... a really bad one... head on... both cars are trashed... there is a small sedan and one of those "racing" car types... no injured people... they are already gone so mom and i start chatting up some of the women there to find out what happened...
young, pregnant mom with two little ones in the car driving home... young man... driving off someplace in the opposite direction... he is driving really really fast, i know no surprise there, and crosses into her lane... smash, they collide...
life flight took out the young man and the pregnant mom needed to be cut out of her car... steering wheel jammed against her belly... both she and one of her little ones are put on stretchers and taken out in an ambulance... now i'm assuming they both went in one cause our ambulances are huge and can fit two stretchers... as for the other little one... not sure if they took that one with mommy or if someone knew them and took the child home...
crime tape all over the place wrapped around where the cars were sitting... what a horrible site... but it's a regular occurrence around here... usually you can hear the sirens in the morning at rush our, at lunch time and again at dinner time... you can practically set your clocks by them... it used to be a quiet area... well, my street is still really quiet. at least until all these small kids get their licences and start driving that is... lol but it is quiet... a street off another street which is rare in this area, down around a bend with woods all behind those of us lucky enough to build at the end of the loop...
as for the shootings i mentioned... nothing close to where mom and i live... well close to where i live... well one time...
guy goes to a pub... gets his check cashed at the bar... leaves and drives home but has company following... gets shot and robbed... can you say crime of opportunity??? who cashes their checks at a bar??? well, not this guy anymore and no he didn't die... the robber was a lousy shot and even a lousier robber... was a neighbor and was caught right away...
anyway, back to last night and why i didn't blog... mom gave me a ride home around 9 pm at which time i proceeded to clean and do laundry... remember, i just got home from being away for over 2 weeks... didn't finish what i had planned to clean until after midnight and by that time i was pooped... so i put emma's blanket over my clean sheets so she didn't get cat hair all over the bed and stretched out to spend some quality time with my kitty cat... she was thrilled as she missed me terribly and i was thrilled to be back in my own bed...
from then i don't remember much... ray came in and kissed me good morning when he got home from work at 5am... his alarm went off at 10:30 am so he could go play golf with dad and i am here... writing... something i'm finding i really like to do...
oh and no i didn't do any crafting... was busy... lol
maybe tonight i'll write again or maybe not... it depends on my mood... so keep checking in to see what all i've been up to... that is if you want to... lol
p.s. i love spell check... lol

My bags are packed, I'm ready to go...

2007-05-09T20:08:00.000-04:00

So today I packed up most of my stuff so that when I get up in the wee hours of the morning all I have to do is ride to the airport and head home.
I can't wait to be back in my own house in my own bed with my sweetheart... I miss him something awful, course I knew I would, I always do.
I'm thrilled that Marc is able to get around some. Today he was down in his basement helping his neighbor work on the rooms down there. They are redoing the whole basement into different rooms. They have a game room, laundry room, sort of a small family/tv room and an office. The value of their house is going to go way up with all the work being done on it.
So my flight takes off at 9:30 am and I arrive in Florida around noon. Ray is picking me up. I can't wait to be near my craft room again. It's really hard not to be able to just go and make something if it gets in my head.
Like I took a gazillion pictures of Max, my granddog these past two weeks and I already have three double page spreads I want to do with some of them. I even have the titles all set for them... one dbl lo of a dog and his bone... one of him playing with my ddil and the other one of him eating his "ice cream"... I even kept the box that the ice cream came in for the layout... lol
It stinks when you have the pages in your head and you can't just go and work on them... Or like the swap I'm in and can't go work on it... I miss home... I can't wait to be home... I know what I'm doing tomorrow night... lol.... scrappin' wahoo...

My first dashboard blog

2007-05-08T23:56:00.000-04:00

Okay so today I decided to start a blog on dashboard... Mostly because a couple of my friends in a Yahoo scrap booking group do it and well... it's fun to read theirs so I thought I would give it a go...
Today was a quiet lazy day... I'm still at my son's house in Massachusetts, helping take care of him since his accident playing softball... I found out that this was his first game ever in softball and it was his first time up at bat... Not too sure he should even try to make a career out of this sport... lol Though he is already talking about when he can play again, which upsets his wife to no end... She thinks he should try something less apt to hurt him... something safer... Well I was pretty sure softball wasn't up there in the list of dangerous sports until now... lol
So like I said... lazy day... I got up early... well early for me... 7:30something and made my coffee, turned on my laptop and sat down to read my e-mails from the day before. I'm obsessed with getting new e-mails... can't wait to read them, reply to them and find out what all my friends are up to... Not a lot of messages so that was a short task for me... oh well, maybe better tomorrow morning.
after coffee and e-mail i head into my room to get dressed and then into the kitchen to make breakfast for me and Marc... He doesn't want any so it's an easy morning... then it's put on my yahoo messenger and get in touch with my mom...
She and I im off and on during the day and call each other a couple times a day too... it's easier to do the iming because then dad doesn't interrupt us all the time with questions for me or comments for her to pass along to me... lol... though now he knows the sound of her fingers on the keyboard and does it just the same... lol he's so funny...
so with me away the computer and phone are the only ways we (mom and I) can keep in touch... and she really misses me... I miss her too...
This afternoon I took a little nap since I've not slept well since being here and when I got up I started the pork roast for dinner and waited for my daughter in law to get home from work to show me how she makes her little roasted potatoes cause they are so yummy...
I miss my sweetie and my home... it's strange how people get so used to their own place that leaving it for a visit trip or for a helpful trip like mine, you get lonely for home and when you are home you can't wait to go visit and see other people... Strange Huh???
But I do miss my own home... things where I want them, what I want and when without worrying about someone else... Knowing what I have to prepare a meal and where all the tools are to do so... How I like my food as apposed to trying to make something for someone else and praying that they will like it... then getting hurt feelings when it's an "okay"... and it's stuff you have made for that person the whole time he was growing up... being told that his wife is a great cook... implying that you aren't... boy I want to go home...
Soon... one more day... then it's on the plane and off to Florida... my own space, my home, my stuff, my sweetheart and my cat... I can't wait... though it will only be for a few weeks then it's off again for my annual trip north to visit with all my kids and grand boys... Do you think I can skip the week at my son's house since I'm here now??? Probably not... oh well... I'll make the best of it like I usually do... find the bright side of any situation... the good within the bad... that's me the eternal optimist.... lol
so I guess I've bored you all enough for tonight... I'll try to come up with something more exciting to write about tomorrow... lol
Later...
D